8 Projects for 8 Nights of Hanukkah

Craft & Design

We’re already a few nights into Hanukkah this year! Not only is Hanukkah the Festival of Lights, but a perfect time to work on Hanukkah inspired projects. One of the first electronic projects that I remember working on was a basic electronic Menorah with my Zadie (grandfather). It was made out of a few small bulbs, wire, a battery pack, and a thin cardboard cutout. Here are projects for you and your families to tackle together during the remaining nights of the holiday.

Gingerbread Menorah

While not a typical tradition, ScooterCathode thought they would put a Jewish spin on things with a Gingerbread Menorah as their first gingerbread creation. The entire process took about four days!

Hacking Hanukkah Cards

Take your Hanukkah cards to the next level by integrating paper circuits directly into the card. Go the extra level by adding LEDs to match the current night of Hanukkah.

Push Button Light-up Tacky Chanukah Sweater

Tacky sweaters aren’t just for Christmas! This sewn circuit sweater has push buttons to light up each night of Chanukah!

Make-a-circuit Chanukah Menorah

Sahrye created this Make-a-circuit menorah with cut and engraved 1/8″ cast acrylic based on a North African style menorah. The circuit is made out of copper tape. The central LEDs on the bottom represent the candles for each night and are in a parallel circuit with 8 LEDs and two coin cell batteries. Each night one LED is added to the bottom row.

Program a Light-Up Felt Menorah

Taking a cue from preschool-style felt boards, Kathy Ceceri decided to use felt as the base material, so she could just press an additional candle onto the menorah every night. And instead of wiring, it uses peel-and-stick conductive tape and Chibitronics Circuit Stickers, LEDs that adhere right onto the tape circuits. It’s easy enough for a child (or a non-techy adult) to make in an afternoon.

Special Edition Deluxe LED Menorah Kit

This Maker Shed Special Edition LED Menorah Kit features assorted LED colors — inspired by those beautiful old multicolor Hanukkah candle sets! ​​Each time you press the button (or switch it off and back on), it displays one more light than it did the last time you turned it on (unless it showed all nine last time, in which case it goes back to two).

DIY Steel Pipe Menorah

Avi was looking to provide their son with a maker angle on the Menorah. Joe Grand’s Pipe Menorah inspired them; they set off to the nearest hardware store to make one of their own topped with LED candles.

Chocolate Hanukkah Dreidels

Amy Wilson created her own chocolate Hanukkah dreidels based off of Martha Stewart’s recipe for Edible Chocolate Marshmallow Dreidels. Remember, you can’t land on Shin if you eat that side first!

The Maker Invent Calendar provides clever and creative gift ideas that will bring holiday cheer to all those you hold dear.

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Dan is the Community Manager at Make: Community. He is also a space enthusiast, event organizer, and co-chair of Maker Faire Rochester. Dan can often be found developing hands-on activities for maker events through Rochester and New York State.

View more articles by Daniel Schneiderman

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